


The Forsaken Throne

by MHaruka



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast Fusion, Angst, Beauty and the Beast AU, Dark Magic, Darker elements, Edelgard has a unique role, Fairy Tale Curses, Ferdinand as Belle, Hubert as the Beast, JP Hubert, M/M, Original Monster Design, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Pining, Rating May Change, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-27
Updated: 2020-01-27
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:35:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22427182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MHaruka/pseuds/MHaruka
Summary: The beloved Princess Edelgard and her right-hand man Hubert are cursed by an enchantress furious with them, leaving her completely helpless and turning him a beast. Their enemies spread rumors about the haunted castle and the cursed Beast, as the Beast loses hope of ever finding true love and breaking the curse. In a neighboring village, a bold, loud, book-loving nobleman sets off for the cursed castle to finally defeat the Beast for once and for all, and bring peace to the village.A Ferdibert Beauty and the Beast AU.
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 11
Kudos: 48





	The Forsaken Throne

**Author's Note:**

> As always with my fics and ideas in general, I wrote JP Hubert. As a result, Hubert might come across as OOC to someone who is only familiar with the EN version. In short, JP Hubert is far more polite, courteous, distanced, and composed than EN Hubert, though he can still brutally cut in a similar way. He uses polite language (keigo, in Japanese) and gives off a butler-like feel. 
> 
> For more information, you can read my translation of the JP Hubert/Ferdinand conversations in this Google Document: [JPN Ferdibert Unique Conversations Translations](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Z9M2_Dck6KIGzA2q-RnGAKu_sY4JYmlXoAZA1Wvtoo8/edit?usp=sharing) You can also find the videos of their support conversations there, if you want to get a feel for their voices and personalities.
> 
> -
> 
> In addition, I will add more tags as the story progresses, so there will be more characters who show up and more things in general!

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess and soon-to-be-Emperor, who lived in a shining castle. She was loved by her friends, her servants, and the masses. Unfortunately, while fighting for the freedom of her people, she earned the ire of her enemies. Among those enemies, was a very powerful Enchantress, who was as beautiful and elegant as she was cruel and corrupt.

The Enchantress was furious with Princess Edelgard’s revolution and her desire to overthrow the old order in favor of a new and just world. So one day, the Enchantress visited the castle and cast a dark spell upon it, cursing everyone who lived within the castle walls. The Enchantress intended for Princess Edelgard to suffer deeply and horribly for everything that she had done and wanted to use that curse to inflict as much pain and suffering as possible.

And so, the Enchantress came up with a very cruel curse, one that would drive Edelgard into despair. The curse would also strike Hubert, that incessant, calculating man who always remained by her side. The man who gave the princess the strength and support to achieve her dreams was the same man who shattered her own ambitions. The curse would primarily target them, turning Hubert into a monstrous beast, leaving Edelgard unable to move or speak, and transforming everyone else in the castle into various animated objects, whose fates would all be tied to Hubert’s own.

The Enchantress chose this particular curse, to completely ruin the lives of the two people who destroyed her ambitions. The curse was designed to bring pain to both of them, hitting each of them where they were most vulnerable. It would leave them both ruined, with no hope of ever breaking the curse.

The Enchantress knew that Princess Edelgard, with her rather harrowing and traumatic past, was no stranger to pain and abuse. She knew that Edelgard’s resolve to achieve her aims was strong enough, that even if her figure was distorted or she was put under physical pain, she would still triumph over it, and accomplish her objectives. After all, what gave her that immense power, were her precious friends and companions - comrades that she would proudly protect. Especially important to her was her right-hand man Hubert. The Enchantress knew that inflicting damage on that man would hurt the princess the most. 

And so, the Enchantress turned the princess into a beautiful and elegant Imperial throne, a golden treasure that sat proudly in the empty Imperial court, helpless and unable to speak or move. She would be forced to watch Hubert suffer under his curse, unable to talk to him, console him, or otherwise help her closest friend cope. But worst of all, she would have lost all control - of her life, her body, her future, and above all, her ability to lift the curse and exist as a human once more.

The Enchantress also knew that Hubert, much like the lady he proudly served, would not care at all about turning into a beast. Hubert would gladly endure any manner of physical pain or torture, so long as he was able to assist Edelgard with her goals and see her visions come to fruition. He soon learned that the fates of everyone else in the castle, including that of Lady Edelgard, was tied to his own curse. As a powerful dark mage, he was confident in his ability to dispel the curse, something the Enchantress easily predicted. 

And so she chose a curse, one that she knew would be impossible for Hubert to break. 

Even in human form, Hubert was distant, icy, gloomy, and slightly creepy, moving as a living mannequin would. She knew that Hubert took pride in his duty as a retainer, despite his lower opinions about himself. She also knew that Hubert did very little to foster interpersonal relationships beyond his Lady, and that he took advantage of those impressions to accomplish his objectives. She was going to use those very impressions against him and render him absolutely useless, incapable of breaking the curse and incapable of assisting his Lady. Even as a human, she knew that no one would ever come to truly love Hubert for who he was, assuming that Hubert was even capable of deeply loving someone himself. She knew Hubert had absolutely no chance of breaking the spell – something that would crush his pride as a sorcerer.

Watching Hubert suffer unable to lift his own curse enthralled her. Seeing him unable to interact with his Lady enthused her. And seeing that insufferable Princess helpless to help Hubert in any way…breaking them that way deeply gratified the Enchantress. She wanted them to see and to know how much the outside world would soon come to hate them. And so she sealed them within the confines of the castle and surrounding forest. She gifted Hubert a magical mirror, one with the ability to see anything in the outside world, one that would provide visions that she knew he would share with his precious princess.

To add a final artistic element to their despair, she placed a single red rose upon the new throne, a symbol of the Empire that Edelgard lost and a symbol of the love Hubert was meant to hopelessly seek out. But this was no ordinary rose. It was an enchanted rose whose petals fell delicately upon the golden seat, meant to show Hubert how much time he and his Lady had left.

Not long after the Enchantress left, rumors began spreading throughout the neighboring villages about an enchanted castle located deep within the mysterious woods - a demonic fortress with a beast for its master. Hubert was aware that the rumors were yet another attack launched by their enemy, intended to lure fighters to the castle to attack the beast in large numbers and seize the throne. To protect his Lady, he moved the throne to her private chambers, and made sure that no one could enter without his permission. Hubert allowed himself to be seen as the master of the castle, helping him keep a vulnerable Lady Edelgard safe and preventing any intruders from finding her out and attacking her instead. The other servants went along with Hubert’s ruse, all of them loyal to their Princess and her right-hand man, though they kept out of his way whenever it was possible. 

Hubert spent his days fighting off intruders, maintaining the castle, and researching an alternative method to break the spell. However, he could not do anything to advance their objectives. He could not even exchange a few simple words with her, finding himself alone within the silent, deserted halls. He routinely visited her, sharing his personal thoughts with the inanimate throne. It was something he never would have dreamed of doing before, even with Lady Edelgard. Though his Lady could not speak or move, if he focused enough, he could almost feel her emotions and thoughts as he bowed once more before the forsaken throne.

The only thing Hubert could do to improve their situation was to break the curse. As a dark mage, he was confident that he would eventually figure out another method to break the curse placed upon himself, upon his Lady, and upon the rest of the castle. 

Unfortunately, all of his attempts and experiments were for naught.

As the years passed, the mysterious woods morphed into a haunted forest, the spring creatures fleeing and the delicate gardens shriveling as a frigid gust consumed all life in its path. An eerie violet frost clung to the castle as thorn-filled vines lined with deadly icicles scaled the walls of the castle and trails of black ice formed intricate sigils that decorated the courtyards. The interior of the fortress carried an oppressive aura, accentuated by the frosty air. The fortress itself was an ominous warning for all who dared to enter.

The Beast had tried for years on end to discover another method of breaking the spell. But it was fruitless, just as the Enchantress had warned him all those years ago. He took the pair of delicate crimson petals that fell from the enchanted rose, grasping them in his deadly talons as he recalled the final part of the curse. 

_ If he could come to love another, and earn their love in return before the last petal fell, then the curse would be broken. However, should he fail, he would be doomed to remain a Beast for all time. _

The Beast glanced at the shattered mirror to his left before immediately turning away, repulsed by his haggard reflection. Hideous wings adorned with black feathers that barely hid the skeletal frame underneath; rough horns that protruded and curled away from his face; and black scales with silver patterns and sharp edges that lined his body ending in black talons. Long, messy, wavy black hair dusted with snow and laced with ice crystals trailed down his slender frame to his waist. Everything about it repulsed him, but what disgusted him the most was his own face, covered with shards of black ice, a dark veil hiding most of his face from the world, with eerie green eyes piercing through.

He had failed to find another method to break the spell, and he was unable to bring himself to share his thoughts with anyone else, let alone open his heart and fall deeply in love with them. As it was, he still had difficulty opening up to anyone aside from his Lady. 

He noticed yet another rose petal slowly falling away from the bloom.

And even if another person did make it through the forest to arrive at the castle, why would they stay? And even if that person chose against all common sense to remain, who was to say that he would even tolerate them, let alone like them? And even in the very unlikely chance that this person was someone he could open his heart up to and fall desperately in love with, he had long since fallen into despair and lost all hope of ever breaking the curse.

For who could ever learn to love... a Beast?

**Author's Note:**

> This was honestly a wild ride for me. I woke up yesterday with details about this idea, and wrote a first draft within a few hours. And this is the result of adding more details and betaing. As a totally new writer who has only done one other fic so far, this was a new and exhilarating experience!
> 
> I cannot promise a reliable/regular posting schedule, because I know my grad school stuff will get in the way, but I will try my hardest to not have you guys wait too long - because I don't want to wait too long either!
> 
> Twitter: [@MikaHaruka_FE3H](https://twitter.com/MikaHaruka_FE3H)


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